Float plan: so your shore contacts know when to start worrying

At sea, only people who know something is wrong can help in an emergency. So every trip needs someone ashore who knows your route, departure and planned arrival, and when to start worrying. Sailseer's float plan does just that: it records your plan, reminds you of your arrival and emails your shore contacts if you do not check in.

Why a float plan makes sense

Without a plan ashore, a missing boat is often noticed late, and then the information a search needs is lacking: boat name, people on board, route and last known position. A float plan gets this information to the right people at the right moment. It is especially worthwhile for single-handed sailing, night passages, long passages and in areas with little traffic.

How to file a float plan

You will find it in the Sail section or, after a weather analysis, under “Float plan for this passage”. You do not need an account. You enter:

• your email address as skipper
• start and destination (harbours)
• up to three shore contacts by email
• boat name and people on board
• departure and planned arrival (ETA)
• the grace period: 1, 2 or 4 hours after the ETA before the alarm is raised

Let your shore contacts know in advance that emails from Sailseer will be coming, and agree with them what they should do in an emergency.

On-board link and view link

As skipper you get an on-board link. With it you report “Departed” and “All good” with a short note, move the ETA, report “Arrived” or cancel the trip. If you wish, the on-board page shares your position from the browser, immediately and then every five minutes. It keeps the screen on and carries on after a reload.

Your shore contacts get a view link: status, departure, ETA, the time of the alarm, the last report and position, and the track on a map. They cannot see email addresses or the on-board link there.

If you are overdue

Sailseer checks every ten minutes. At the ETA you get a reminder: report your arrival or move the ETA. If you move it before the alarm, reminder and alarm start again.

Once the ETA plus grace period has passed and nobody has reported “Arrived”, the overdue email goes to your shore contacts and to you. It contains the last report, the last position and what to do in an emergency: first try to reach the crew and the harbour master at the destination, then the rescue coordination centre; in Germany that is MRCC Bremen of the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service DGzRS (+49 421 53 68 70, or 124 124 from a mobile phone on the coast), abroad the MRCC for the area or 112. On an inland lake, the email gives the emergency number 112 and the water police. If you check in afterwards, an all-clear follows.

What the float plan is not

The float plan is a safety net, not search and rescue. It runs automatically, no control centre watches over your trip, and the alarm only comes after the ETA plus grace period. Positions are only available while the on-board page is open and the phone has a connection; at sea without signal, the last one remains.

If you are in distress, use the direct route: a distress call on VHF channel 16 or by DSC on channel 70 to the responsible MRCC, and 112 ashore. To operate the VHF set you need the SRC radio certificate.

Data and deletion

Sailseer stores only the details of the float plan, your reports under way and the shared positions. Everything is deleted three days after arrival or cancellation, and at the latest 14 days after the ETA. Every email contains a link that stops an address from receiving float plans. Details are in the privacy policy.

Anchor watch and thunderstorm warning

The Sail section has two more helpers. The anchor watch remembers where the anchor went down and calculates the swinging radius from chain plus boat length plus 5 m, or you enter it directly. If the boat is outside it three times in a row or the GPS is silent for 90 seconds, it raises the alarm with sound, vibration and a notification. It only runs while the page is open; on the iPhone, Safari pauses location in the background.

The thunderstorm warning appears as a box in the point analysis and looks at the next hour: lightning from ground networks or the satellite and rain from the radar, summed up as green, yellow or red with a sentence on what to do. The thunderstorm watch checks every five minutes and alerts you when the level rises; in navigation mode it moves with the boat, and the anchor watch has its own for the anchorage. It, too, only runs while the page is open. More in the guide Gusts and thunderstorms.

If you are sailing across borders, you will find the formalities in the guide Clearing in. Plan your passage on the map and file the float plan right alongside it.